


The Attempt

by RainbowSerenity



Series: Royal AU [3]
Category: Final Fantasy XIII
Genre: Alternate Universe - Royalty, F/M, Magic, Modern Royalty, Series
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-29
Updated: 2017-11-29
Packaged: 2019-02-08 05:58:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,628
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12858252
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RainbowSerenity/pseuds/RainbowSerenity
Summary: Lightning, the kingdom of Eden's long-lost princess, finally gets a moment to hang out with her sister. Unfortunately, there's a very unwelcome interruption...followed by a way more welcome one.





	The Attempt

Going from someone who spent a fair amount of her time alone to becoming literal royalty who constantly had her face plastered on magazines and the front page of hundreds of websites was more than a little shocking. Honestly, Lightning’s head still spun when she thought about it too hard. Even though she’d settled into the palace of Eden by now and gotten used to the hubbub, it still put her on edge when someone got in her space - or worse, interrupted her very limited alone time.

This was why her first instinct was to glare daggers at her suite’s door when there was a knock, but it instantly turned to joy when someone opened it and came inside.

“Serah!” Lightning immediately got to her feet to embrace her sister in a tight hug.

“Ohhh, it’s so good to see you!” Serah grinned as she pulled away a little bit, her hands still on Lightning’s shoulders. “I’ve been so busy with school lately, but I figured I needed to take a break and _make_ time to see my favorite sister.”

“Yeah, if you felt like wasting an entire day,” Lightning replied, but her ‘joke’ wasn’t really too far off. The palace had basically been on lockdown in the months she’d been named the kingdom of Eden’s princess, the next in line for the throne - which made it extremely difficult for visitors to get through. She supposed that Serah had easily gotten clearance considering she was, of course, part of the royal family now.

“C’mon, it’s not so bad.” 

“I guess not.” She’d never complain to her sister about how she _really_ felt about this new title thrust upon her Sure, Serah was a princess of Eden as well, but _she_ wasn’t the one next in line to be queen. 

That, of course, fell on Lightning’s shoulders.

Serah collapsed into an armchair with a bright smile. “So c’mon, sis! Talk to me. I feel like it’s been forever!”

Lightning smiled and shook her head, gingerly taking a seat on a nearby armchair, which made Serah giggle. “What?”

“Look at _you._ All those etiquette lessons are really sticking, huh?”

Too late, Lightning realized she was sitting with stick-straight posture, ankles crossed and hands resting on her lap. She shrugged a bit uncomfortably. “I guess. I mean…” She arched a brow. “It’s not as though I slouched all the time back then, anyway. The Corps would stand for it.”

“I bet not.” Serah laughed again. “Still…all of this seems to suit you.”

 _That_ surprised her. “What are you talking about?”

“Well…” Serah gestured around the elaborate room, like that would demonstrate. Lightning had to admit, the decor was suited to her perfectly - classic, with some feminine touches here and there. 

Still, the suite was enormous. There were times when it felt bigger than the entire floor of where old, dingy apartment she and Serah used to share was, and honestly, that was probably close to the truth. The ‘sitting room’, where she typically received guests - and where maids waited for her every morning - felt like a house in itself, but there was also her huge bedroom, extremely elegant bathroom (with the jacuzzi tub and shower with multiple waterfall heads), and the walk-in closet that any other girl would’ve died for, but Lightning didn’t really. Hell, _Serah’s_ walk-in closet at her own suite here in the palace held far more clothes than Lightning’s did, and she was rarely here since she’d opted to live at the dorms at Eden University.

Even now, it was a little overwhelming.

“Well…?” Lightning asked when Serah didn’t elaborate.

“…You worked so hard after mom died,” she finally replied in a quiet voice. “And I know you were planning on working yourself too thin after I got into school, even with all of my scholarships.” She looked her older sister in the eye. “You deserve this, you know? All of it.”

Though she knew what Serah was trying to say, Lightning wasn’t all that touched by the sentiment. “I deserve to be the princess?”

A pause. “Maybe not _specifically_ what I meant, but…”

“So you mean I deserve to have practically every minute of my life planned out for me? I _deserve_ to have cameras flashing in my face when I so much as step a foot outside of the palace? I _deserve_ to have - “ _Bodyguards tailing me_ , she didn’t say, because it made her suddenly of Hope, and she hoped the flush on her face could be seen as a reaction to her annoyance.

“No!” Serah gasped, running her fingers through her ponytail. “No, sis, that’s not it at all.”

“Then _what_?”

She sighed and dropped her hands in her lap. “You deserve to be heard. To have all of these nice things. To have people looking out for _you_ for once.” 

Lightning’s entire posture softened as she reached over and lay a hand on her sister’s arm. “Serah, I don’t need anyone to look after me. I never have. I was happy enough looking after _you_.”

“But you don’t have to do everything.” Serah covered her sister’s hand with her own. “I’m grateful to you and everything you did for me. You know that. But don’t you think that maybe now, you can relax a little bit?”

“How can I relax?” The question was pretty legitimate, all things considered. “I’m being run ragged all the time. Sazh never shuts the hell up about what I’m doing wrong, and I have to figure out how to help run an entire _kingdom._ There’s no relaxing when it comes to that.”

“I guess not,” Serah replied slowly, but then she smiled. It seemed to brighten the entire room. “But you have a break now, right? I mean, you’re sitting here talking to me instead of doing princess-y things.”

“…True.” Lightning smiled back as well. “How about I go get us some of those eclairs you like so much? We can eat too many and then tomorrow morning, you can claim you’ll never eat any _again.”_

“I dunno, sis. I always thought that was _you_ ,” she teased.

“You wish.”

Though she’d intended to go down to the kitchens to get some of those ironic eclairs herself, Lightning didn’t want to waste a second with her sister, so she instead picked up the rarely-used phone in her suite - it wasn’t used for calls outside the palace, but for contacting various workers, should she need anything.

She pressed the line for the kitchen, and the chef who answered sounded surprised to hear her, but was delighted in her request. “As soon as we’re able, Your Highness!” he said in a heavy accent. “All the eclairs yourself and Princess Serah can eat!”

“Thank you,” she said before hanging up. Serah was watching her amusement. “What?”

“You know…I think you were made for this job.” Serah cocked her head a little. “You just can’t see it yet.”

“I don’t know.” Lightning sighed and sat back down. “You’d make a far better queen than I will. You’re caring and compassionate.”

“And you’re not?”

“Not as much as you.” They both smiled, and Lightning continued before the conversation could get into more serious territory. “Plus, Sazh is getting on my case about being ready for this stupid ball. You’d definitely _love_ all this ridiculousness if it was tailored to you.”

“Sazh says I’ll have one too, eventually.” Serah’s eyes were already sparkling. “It won’t be as big of a deal, but I’ll still get to try on all those dresses…maybe waltz with a prince…”

“You might get to at mine.” Lightning huffed a little under her breath. “Sazh failed to mention that typically, these balls were held to look for potential _suitors_.”

“What?! Really??”

“I wish I was joking.”

“…So does that mean anyone… _interesting_ is coming?” There was a wicked little smile on Serah’s face, which Lightning narrowed her eyes at. Still, she couldn’t ignore the question.

“Last I heard, the patron of Yusnaan was definitely attending.” Honestly, she didn’t know much about any of the leaders outside of Eden - something Sazh always chastised her for. “The son of Primarch accepted, too.” She ignored the way Serah’s eyes were glittering. “Let’s see…Yaschis Massif is sending one of their noblemen. I know an invitation was extended to the president of Academia, but there’s been no answer. The duchess of Luxerion and the princess of Oerba are coming as well.”

“Really?” Serah tapped her chin. “If this is primarily to find suitors, why would girls be invited?”

“Maybe to even things out. Or to try and gain relations.” Either way, it made Lightning nervous. “There are others too, but I can’t remember.”

There was a laugh. “I’m sure Sazh is giving you a hard time about _that.”_

“Obviously.”

They exchanged a smile that was interrupted by a knock at her door. A muffled voice from the other side announced, “Your Highness, I’ve come with your request from the kitchen!”

She stood and crossed the room, opening the wide, ornate door. An unfamiliar butler was standing there holding a huge tray that was covered in eclairs. “Your request, yes?”

“Yes, thank - thank you,” she stammered when the butler practically shoved the tray in her arms. She was about to kick the door shut, but a pounding of hurried footsteps suddenly came from down the hall, and a familiar voice cried out.

“Wait right there! Don’t move!”

The butler suddenly looked terrified, but only got two steps away before Hope suddenly tackled the man to ground, pinning his arms behind his back.

“Hope!” Lightning’s mouth fell open in a positively un-princesslike manner. “What the hell are you doing?!”

Instead of answering her directly, Hope all but slammed the butler’s head to the floor, speaking in an authoritative tone she’d never heard him use before. “Explain yourself! Who ordered the poison on Her Highness?!”

“What?” Lightning stared at the scene in front of her in horror…and honestly, a bit of fear.

She’d had no idea that Hope could be so vicious. 

“ _Answer me!”_ he commanded, tightening his grip on the butler’s wrists.

“I-I-I don’t k-k-know!” the butler finally stammered out. “I-I was s-simply told t-t-to deliver the-e-e tray t-to the p-princess…!”

Hope made an annoyed sound and spoke into the tiny microphone many of the staff wore. Almost instantly, guards and security apprehended the butler, who was still stuttering his innocence, from Hope.  

“What happened?!” 

Lightning jumped a little, barely aware that Serah had appeared behind her. “I’m…not really sure.” She curled her hands into fists to hide her slight tremors.

“It’s these.” Hope took one of the eclairs from the tray Lightning was still holding and pulled it into two pieces. The sisters gasped in unison as a rank, purple smoke curled upwards from the creme in the center. 

“What’s that?” Serah asked in quiet voice, suddenly standing very close to her older sister.

“Poisonga,” Hope explained in a grave voice. “It’s a fairly simple spell used to, well…poison the target. I…sensed it when that butler walked past me with the tray.”

“A _spell_?” While it wasn’t completely unheard of for people to be able to use magic - in fact, Serah was fairly proficient in the healing type - to use it on another person like this was simply…

Lightning cleared her throat a little, trying to calm Serah’s outburst. “Thank you,” she said softly to Hope. “For saving us.”

The look in Hope’s eyes spoke volumes of gratitude, as did the surprised little smile that formed on his lips. “It’s what I’m supposed to do, Your….Light,” he replied, catching himself at the last moment.

Serah was momentarily distracted as another guard came to take the tray of eclairs - for evidence, probably - but then looked between the two, as though she knew was was going on. Lightning could easily ignore it, but Hope certainly couldn’t.

“Ah, forgive me.” He took a little step back and bowed. “Your Highness, Princess Serah. I’m sorry we met under such stressful circumstances.”

Lightning rolled her eyes, but Serah just laughed lightly. “You saved us! No need to be so formal. Right… _Light?”_ she said in a significant tone.

Sometimes Lightning really wished her sister wasn’t so damn observant.

“This is Hope,” she said, ignoring the blush she could feel on her face, though she was shocked to see one on Hope’s as well. “He’s my…personal bodyguard.”

“Oh?” This seemed to delight Serah to no end. “And he’s doing a great job so far!” 

He smiled, attempting to compose himself. “I wouldn’t want any harm to come to either of Eden’s heirs.”

Before either of them could reply, Yeul appeared with another tray of eclairs. “Special ordered,” she explained quietly, “because the entire kitchen is under question.”

Normally, Lightning would’ve felt sympathetic, but given the fact she’d nearly been poisoned, she didn’t mind that much. “Thank you, Yeul.” She took the tray from the girl, who curtsied before walking off, and glanced at Hope. “Do these pass inspection?”

Hope glanced at the tray. To her further surprise, he raised a hand over it, fingers spread slightly. A strange wave of white light appeared, clearly a spell.

…But nothing happened.

“What was that?”

“Dispel,” he explained. “A spell that can alert to any abnormalities.” He smiled. “Fortunately, these are fine.”

“Oh.” She hadn’t expected him to actually use _magic,_ but then again, if he’d been able to sense the Poisonga from the other plate, surely she should have figured he’d be able to use it in some way. “Good to know.”

He smiled again, which she swore she could feel in her bones. As it was, a shiver went down her spine, as though he was holding her close during a waltz again, only of course, he wasn’t even touching her now. 

How could a mere smile calm her so much? Even the tremors in her hands from the shock of what had happened had stilled.

Serah suddenly rolled her eyes and grabbed the tray from her sister’s hands. “I’ll take these,” she said in a singsong voice, heading back into the sitting room.

This seemed to snap them both out of whatever stupor they’d been in. Hope abruptly cleared his throat. “I’ll leave you to your visit…Light.” Another small smile quirked his lips, like he couldn’t believe he was allowed to speak to her so informally. “Please, don’t hesitate to call for me if there’s any more trouble.”

“I’m sure I’ll be fine.” After all, what could be worse than nearly being poisoned in her own room? “But…I will. If I have problems, that is.” 

He stared at her for another moment before bowing, likely out of habit, and slowly walked away, She could hear him let out a long, low breath, and did the same once she closed the door behind her.

Naturally, Serah was staring at her with a wicked little grin, a bunch of the eclairs already missing from the plate. “Sooooo,” she pretty much sang, “who was _that?”_

“You heard him.” Lightning sat back down, taking an eclair, but she didn’t eat it right away. “He’s my bodyguard.”

“Your _personal_ bodyguard.” 

“You’d have one too, if you were in the public eye as much as I was.”

“Hmmm…” Serah simply nibbled at the edge of another eclair. “Anything special you want to tell me about him?”

“No.” Lightning ignored the memories of feeling him pressed up against her back, of their hands laced together as they waltzed, or even now, how he’d smiled at her like nothing else mattered.

And then she remembered…she’d invited him to her introduction ball.

Serah pouted. “Nothing?”

Lightning only smiled, murmuring before she finally took a bite of her eclair.

“Not _yet_.”

**Author's Note:**

> I'm on [tumblr](http://rainbowserenity.tumblr.com)~


End file.
